Geo Soctomah Neptune, a two-spirit artist, education and member of the Passamaquoddy Tribe, has become the first openly transgender or nonbinary person elected in Maine. Neptune won the most votes for a seat on the Indian Township school board last week; they will begin their term on October 2.
“We expect these electoral victories to happen in Portland but often small communities are more willing to embrace whole identities,” MaineTransNet Executive Director Quinn Gormley told Maine Public Radio for a story printed in the Bangor Daily News.
Reports BDN:
“To almost stand up and say that they’re embracing me in this leadership role as a Two-Spirit was incredibly affirming,” [Neptune] said. “I feel very lucky that I live in a place where my community accepts me because a lot of trans people don’t have that.”
Neptune’s decision to run for the school board came at the urging of community members and tribal youth, who were familiar with their work as an art teacher in an after-school program. Neptune said that students wanted more access to Passamaquoddy culture and language.
“The education system treats our own culture as supplementary, as an extracurricular activity that the kids are allowed to do, instead of treating Passamaquoddy culture and history as one of the main priorities in the education system,” they said. “These youth concerns, on top of community members asking me to run, those are my two motivating reasons for running for this office.”
As a member of the school board, Neptune hopes to increase student and teacher access to Passamaquoddy culture and ceremonial teachings, as well as work toward language revitalization. …
MaineTransNet shared the news on its Facebook page, and by Friday the post had been shared more than 9,000 times by people as far away as Australia. Neptune said Indigenous people all over the world are reacting to the post.
“I don’t know why it resonates with so many people,” Neptune said. “I just know that I’m trying to do my best to do the work that Creator wants me to do while I’m here. And that my community, both my literal, immediate community, and my greater global community, I’ll say, all really support me, and I really, I really am thankful for that. And I really, I really hope that I serve my community.”
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